The Life of Son Goten
by LivingXDeadXGirl
Summary: This is the story of Gotens life. When Gohan dies at the hands of their abusive mother, is there any hope left for Goten? The only one he has left is Trunks, and it seems like he';s drifting farther apart. Can the purple haired prince save him? Or will...
1. How it Started

**Well, I sort of just came up with the idea with this one. I haven't really seen a story about Gotens life, I've only seen stories about Gohan's, so I figured, what the hell, I'll make one. **

**Warning: Child Abuse, Character Death, suicide, yaoi, lemon. If you have a problem with any of these, then do not read.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing in this story. Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z, and Dragon Ball GT all belong to Toei animation. The only thing I own is the plot.**

**Full Summary: This is the story of Gotens life. When Gohan dies at the hands of their abusive mother, is there any hope left for Goten? The only one he has left is Trunks, and it seems like he's drifting farther apart each day. Can the purple haired prince save him? Or will Goten crack from the pressure? Read to find out.  
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Hello, my name is Goten Son, and I'm nineteen years old. My older brothers name is Gohan, I looked up to him, he was, and still is my role model, and my protector. Then there's Trunks, my best friend in the world. He's a year older than me, but it doesn't seem like it. My dads name is Goku. He's not with us anymore, he died protecting the earth from a creature named Majin Buu. Gohan used to talk about him a lot, he said that he was the kindest, most caring man on earth. I wish I could have met him. Then there's my mother, her name is Chichi, and I wish I knew what went wrong. She's not the person she seems to be, she's not the mother I once knew. Maybe I should start from the beginning. It started ten years ago this day.

"Mommy, I'm home." nine year old Goten said, opening the back door and stepping into the kitchen. He stopped when he picked up an unfamiliar scent. It was strong, and made his nose wrinkle in disgust. Wanting to know what it was, he put his backpack down in one of the kitchen chairs, and ventured into the living room, where the smell was stronger. When he entered, he saw Chichi passed out on the couch, her right hand dangling over the edge, holding an empty bottle of whisky. He had seen her with those a lot since his father had gone back to heaven a year ago.

Quietly, Goten walked over to his mother, and lightly touched her cheek. She moved but didn't wake up, only turning to the side, and dropping the bottle on the carpet. Goten tried once again to wake his mother up, only succeeding in making her snore. Before he could try anything else, he heard the backdoor open, and figured it must have been Gohan home from school.

"Goten, mom?" he heard the fifteen year old call from the kitchen. Goten moved away from his mother and went into the kitchen, finding his brother going through the fridge. Gohan looked up and smiled at his little brother.

"Hey, Goten. How was school?" he asked, taking a bite of his apple. The smaller saiyan simply shrugged, his gaze going to the living room.

"It was okay. Is mommy going to be alright?"

"What do you mean?" The older saiyan asked, looking worriedly at his younger sibling.

"Mommy's in the living room sleeping on the couch. She was holding a bottle of something." Gohan nodded and went into the living room, breathing out a sigh of relief when he saw she was still sleeping. He then went back into the kitchen and turned to his little brother.

"Did you try to wake her up?" Goten nodded, and raised one of his eyebrows when his brother gave him a stern look. Gohan walked over to him and placed his hands on the younger boys shoulders, getting down so he was eye level with him. "You have to promise me that if you ever see her like that, you won't wake her up. Even if you don't see a bottle in the room, do not wake her up."

"But why?"

"Because I said so, Goten. Just please, promise me that you won't."

"Alright, I promise." Goten answered, holding out his pinky. Gohan nodded and linked his pinky with his brothers using his other hand to ruffle the boys spiky black hair. Goten smiled up at Gohan and hugged him. "What's for dinner?" Gohan chuckled when he heard his and Gotens tummy's growl.

"Um, what are you in the mood for?"

"Pasta!" Goten said, a little bit loud. Gohan hushed him by holding a finger to his own lips. The spiky haired saiyan got the message and placed his own palm over his mouth, nodding his apologies. Gohan boiled some water, and put some pasta in the pan, then started working on his homework while it boiled. Goten had finished what little homework he had, and watched as Gohan did his, fascinated at how fast Gohan solved the math problems he didn't even understand.

"How did you do that?"

"Do what?" Gohan asked, solving the last problem and putting it in his folder.

"Those problems, I didn't even understand them, and you figured them out without having to use paper." Gohan chuckled, and got up to get the food.

"It's just easy for me Gohan. When you're my age, it'll be easy for you as well. Trust me, you may think it's cool now, but when you actually have to do it, you're going to wish you were still in third grade." he answered, putting the pasta into bowels, and putting them on the table. Immediately, Goten dug in, almost finishing the entire thing in one bite. Gohan however, did finish it in one bite, smiling at the look on his little brothers face.

"Show off." the nine year old muttered, stuffing the rest of the pasta in his mouth. He got up and put his plate in the sink, lifting himself up so he could wash it. They both stopped when they heard movement in the other room, and a hung over Chichi entered the kitchen, stumbling a bit.

"Where's the aspirin?" she asked. Gohan went over to one of the drawers, opened up a bottle of aspirin, and handed her two pills, along with a glass of water. Goten looked at his mother, never seeing her like this before. She noticed him watching her and got annoyed. "What, Goten?"

"Nothing." he said, looking at his brother, who let out another sigh of relief. Gohan made a motion towards the stairs, and Goten ran up them, wondering why his brother was so tense. The young boy went into his room and grabbed his pajama's, then went back downstairs. He peeked around the corner, and saw his mother in the living room, an ice pack on her head, and Gohan in the kitchen, working on more of his homework. Silently, he slipped past the living room, then went into the kitchen. He opened the back door and headed for the bath house. Once there, he stripped down, and hopped in the warm water, dunking his head under. He heard the door open, and Gohan came in, holding a towel.

"You forgot this again." he said, putting it down on the bench.

"Thanks." Goten said, lathering some shampoo in his hair. Gohan was about to leave, when Goten spoke up. "Gohan?"

"Yeah?" the older boy asked, turning around to face his brother.

"Why were you acting so weird when mom woke up?" he asked, dunking his head back under to get the shampoo out. Gohan sighed, and tried to think of what to say, not noticing Goten has remerged from the water, and was waiting patiently for his answer.

"Well, Goten, when mom is in a deep sleep, she is sometimes…in a bad mood when she wakes up. And she get's in an even worse mood if woken up." he explained, carefully choosing his words, not wanting to tell his little brother their mother was a mean drunk.

"Oh, okay. But, why would she be mad at us?" Once again Gohan sighed, trying to choose his words carefully.

"Because some people are just like that when they're woken up. Now, finish your bath, sooner that's done the better. Okay?"

"Okay." Goten responded, rinsing the last of the soap from his hair before getting out and grabbing a towel. Gohan went outside while he got dressed and looked up at the sky. Goten came out a few minutes later, dressed in a t-shirt and boxer shorts. He smiled up at his older brother, and headed for the house, Gohan right behind him. Once inside, they quietly went upstairs, and Gohan tucked Goten into bed.

"Night, Goten." he said, turning the light off.

"Gohan?"

"Yeah?" he whispered, coming back into the room and turning the light on.

"Can you tell me another story about, daddy?" Gohan smiled and shook his head.

"Not tonight, Goten. Tomorrow, I will, I promise." Goten nodded, disappointed, and snuggled into the covers, letting sleep take over him.

When he awoke the next morning, it was to yelling down in the kitchen. Slowly, Goten got out of bed, wondering what was happening. He crept down the hallway, and went down the stairs, hopping over the one that squeaked. He pushed up against the wall, and took a peek in the kitchen. There was Chichi and Gohan, arguing over something. Gohan had his hand on his cheek, and Chichi had her hand raised, yelling at him about a stain on the living room carpet. Little Goten gasped, when his mother brought her hand down on Gohans face. Apparently, they heard him, because Chichi's head shot up, as did Gohans. Fury in his mothers eyes, worry in his brothers. Thinking quick, Goten made a run for the stairs, dashing down the hallway and flying into his room, sitting on his bed. He pulled the covers over him, and prayed they would have thought it was their imaginations. He tensed when he sensed someone enter his room, and the bed dip.

"Goten." a soft voice said. Goten looked up and looked into the black eyes of his big brother, worry, sorrow, and guilt filling them. The nine year olds eyes flickered to the bruise on the left side of Gohans face. Gently, he reached out to touch it, stroking it slightly.

"Gohan, are you okay?" he asked. Gohan nodded and pulled his brother into a hug, trying to reassure the young boy.

"I'm alright Goten…How much did you see?"

"I saw mommy hit you, and heard you two arguing over something in the living room." he answered, looking up into his brothers eyes, silently asking for an explanation.

"Mom just got mad, kiddo. There was a stain on the living room carpet and she thought I did it. It'll blow over in a little bit." Goten smiled slightly, knowing that his brother was okay. He was still surprised that his mother had struck him though. She was never violent unless it was in a spar, even then, she never hit hard.

"Gohan, she's not gonna come up here, is she?"

"No. I need to head over to Capsule Corp for a little bit, wanna come?" At this, Gotens eyes lit up, and he nodded.

"Yeah!" Gohan laughed and got off the bed.

"Go get ready, I'm leaving in about ten minutes." and with that, he left the room, heading to his own. Goten went over to his bed and made it, then went to his closet and took out his orange and blue fighting gi, knowing he'd be sparring Trunks later. He brushed his teeth, and then headed for Gohans room. He was so excited he didn't notice his mother coming up the stairs until he ran into her.

"Watch where you're going." she growled, holding another ice pack to her head. Goten's eyes widened in surprise. She had never spoken to him like that before. He said his apologies and went into his brothers room, looking behind him to see if she was there.

"You okay?" Goten turned back around to face his brother and nodded.

"I'm fine, bumped into mom by accident." he said, looking at the floor, scuffing his feet. Gohan put a hand on his head and closed his eyes.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah." Gohan nodded, and motioned for Goten to follow him as he flew out the window. Following behind his older brother, Goten looked at the forest below, watching as the green of the tree's flew by, lost in thought.

'_I wonder what's going on with mom, she's been like this since daddy went back to heaven.' _the young boy thought, slamming into Gohan when he stopped. Gohan turned around, and raised an eyebrow, looking down at his brother.

"Daydreaming?" Goten nodded, wondering why Gohan stopped. As if reading his mind, he pointed to the dome shaped building below. The two siblings headed down, and landed on the soft green front lawn of Capsule Corp. Trunks opened the door and ran out to greet them, his purple hair flying up while he ran. Goten smiled and met his friend halfway across the lawn.

"Hey Goten. Hey Gohan." the purple haired prince said, smiling brightly.

"Hey Trunks, where's Vegeta?" Gohan asked. Trunks used his thumb to point in back of him.

"Training room." his blue gaze then turned to Goten. "Wanna go spar?"

"Sure." The spiky dark haired saiyan said, taking off into the sky towards their training spot, Trunks right behind him. The two demi saiyans flew towards a clearing in the forest. They landed on the light green grass and took their fighting stances. Goten remembered when they first came here, the place was covered in trees. That was taken care of within two minutes of sparring. Every single tree within a fifty foot radiance had been wiped out, which gave them enough room to spar.

"Ready?" Trunks asked, lunging forward and attempting to land a punch in Gotens stomach. The smaller boy blocked it, and aimed for Trunks' head, but only kicked air. He sensed Trunks behind him, and narrowly avoided a punch to the nose, managing to kick Trunks in the stomach. The purple haired boy growled, and threw a ki blast at Goten, who dodged it, and threw one of his own. Trunks dodged and it hit one of the trees in the very back off the clearing.

Goten jumped out of the path of Trunks' ki blast, and backed up till he was against a tree. Both boys tried to catch their breath, neither taking their eyes off each other. Once they were able to breath somewhat normally again, they started attacking one another. Both flew into the air, and shot ki blasts as fast as they could. Goten got hit in the gut with one, and fell to the ground, but quickly flipped up when Trunks flew down to punch him. He did a few back flips and shot a kamehameha at Trunks. The purple haired boy just barely avoided it, falling on his butt trying to get out of the way. Goten smiled and disappeared, then reappeared behind him, punching him in the gut.

"Alright, I give." Trunks said, lying on his back, trying to catch his breath. Goten smiled, and lied down next to his friend, also trying to catch his breath.

"Does this mean I won this time?" Goten asked. Trunks smirked and nodded.

"You won this time, but next time you won't be so lucky."

"Oh, I think I will." the dark haired boy said smoothly, sitting up. He glanced over at his best friend, and noticed how pink his cheeks were from fighting. He also noticed how bright his eyes were, and how crystal clear they became when he was calm. Trunks noticed him staring and raised a purple eyebrow.

"What are you looking at?" he asked, blushing slightly, thanking Kami Goten would think he was still flushed from fighting.

"Nothing." Goten said, looking away from him. Trunks fell back and put his arms behind his head, looking up at the sky.

"Hey, Goten?"

"Yeah?"

"Wanna sleep over tonight?"

"Yeah, but I have to ask my mom first." Goten replied, looking up at the sky. He sensed Trunks nod, and he closed his eyes. He felt Gohans ki heading for them, and he sat up, noticing Trunks do the same. Gohan landed on the grass, Vegeta behind him.

"We gotta go Goten."

"And we have to train, brat." Vegeta said, looking at his son. The two demi saiyans nodded, and took off into the sky, Trunks heading left, Goten heading right.

"Gohan, Trunks asked me if I could sleep over, can I?" he asked, giving his brother puppy eyes. Gohan laughed and nodded.

"It's okay with me, but you have to ask mom." At this, Gotens smile turned into a frown, and he looked down. He felt Gohans hand on his shoulder and looked up. "Just ask her. Worst she'll say is no."

"I know, but I don't want to make her mad." Gohan felt a pang of guilt at telling his brother about their mothers mood swings. He only did it to protect him. Sighing he looked back at his brother, who had fallen a bit behind.

"She won't get mad if you ask her." he said, smiling at him. Goten looked up and nodded, slowing down when he saw their house. The siblings descended, and landed in their backyard. They opened the door and went into the house, only to find Chichi sitting at the table, a book in one hand, a glass of vodka in the other. Her eyes were already blood shot.

"Hey mom, can I stay over at Trunks' tonight?" Goten asked. Chichi looked up, annoyed.

"No."

"Please m-" he was cut off when Chichi slapped him across the face. Instinctively, his hand went to his right cheek. He backed up into Gohan, who was tense behind him.

"Don't argue with me." Chichi yelled, glaring daggers at her youngest son. Goten was too shocked to reply, his mother never struck him before, accept when they sparred. He heard his brother tell him to go upstairs. He didn't hesitate, and took off up the stairs, not stopping until he was in his room. He went over to his window and looked out, his gaze going up to the sky.

"I wish you were here daddy." he whispered, tears forming in his dark eyes.

"Me too kiddo." Gohan said, picking his brother up and hugging him tight. Goten let a few tears slide down his cheeks as he snuggled into his brothers embrace. He heard Gohan whisper apologies to him, telling him that he was sorry mom had hit him, and that he had tried protecting him from that.

"Why, did she do it?"

"She was irritated, Goten. I guess, she just got upset." Goten looked up at his big brother, the last of his tears falling. He felt Gohan hug him tight before he was set on his feet. Wiping the last of his tears away, he looked up at Gohan, and smiled weakly. Gohan smiled back and looked at the door before looking back at him.

"Wanna go spar?" Goten nodded, happy again, and went out for the second time that day to spar. The two siblings headed out, and landed in a secret spot, only themselves and their father knew about.

"Ready?" Gohan asked, taking a fighting stance. Goten nodded, and the two began fighting. They threw kicks and punches at one another with lightning speed. Goten blocked every punch Gohan threw at him, landing a few of his own in the process. He blocked a kick aimed for his head, but failed to block the punch aimed at his gut. He spiraled down to the ground and landed flat on his back. Goten sat up and rubbed his head, blinking a few times. He felt a hand on his pulling him up.

"Sorry, I thought you would block it." Gohan said. Goten nodded and smiled. He looked up at the sky and noticed it was dark. They had been sparring for almost five hours. "Come on, Goten, let's head home, we don't want mom to worry." Goten nodded and flew after his brother, wishing they could stay just a bit longer. He looked up at the sky, watching as the stars twinkled.

'_Wow, they look kinda like Trunks' eyes.' _he thought. He sighed when he saw the house coming into view, and prayed he would be able to slip upstairs without being seen. Following his brother down, he thought about what happened earlier, and what he did to make her so mad. His brothers kind voice broke him from his thoughts. He noticed they had landed, and were walking towards the house. He didn't even remember landing.

He took a deep breath and entered the kitchen right behind his brother, his small nine year old body unseen behind Gohans larger one. He could see the flickering lights from the TV in the living room, and a sigh of relief escaped his lips. The siblings were almost at the stairs when they heard Chichi.

"Where the hell have you two been?" she growled. Goten froze, and felt Gohan push him backwards so he was farther behind him.

"We were training and lost track of time." Gohan said, his head down. Goten gasped when he saw his mother strike his brother across the face, and was even more shocked when he saw her do it a second time. He backed up slowly, and watched as his mother punched Gohan in the gut. His brother fell to the ground, and her gaze went to Goten. She started stumbling towards him, too drunk to walk straight. He turned around and went to go upstairs when he felt her grab his arm. She spun him around and punched him hard in the gut, making him gasp.

"You should have been home!" she screamed, kicking him a few times before Gohan stood between them. Goten opened his eyes when he heard his brothers voice, telling him to go upstairs. Goten stood up shakily, but didn't move. He was too afraid. He watched as his brother was beaten by their mother. He watched her kick him, and punch him until he was unconscious. Chichi turned her back and went into the kitchen, a few seconds later there was the sound of a can being opened. He waited until his mother went back into the living room before he walked over to Gohan. Using every ounce of strength he had, he lifted Gohan up the best he could, and dragged him up the stairs, collapsing from his weight when they got to his bedroom.

"Gohan." Goten whispered, shaking the older saiyan slightly. He heard Gohan groan, and saw his black eyes open. "Gohan." Goten gasped, hugging his big brother tight. He felt Gohan embrace him back, weakly.

"Goten, there's a sensu bean in my dresser drawer, can you please grab it?" Goten nodded and jumped up, running over to the drawer and retrieving the bean. He walked back over to Gohan and handed it to him, watching as he ate it. The bruises and cuts on him cleared up, and Goten wrapped his arms around his neck, hugging him as tight as he could.

"Are you okay, Gohan?" he asked, worry written all over his nine year old face. Gohan smiled slightly and nodded.

"I'm fine, little guy, how about you?"

"I'm alright." Goten said, looking up at his big brother. "Gohan, can I stay in here with you tonight?"

"Of course." the older boy replied, picking Goten up and sitting him on the bed. "I'm sure you don't want to go back downstairs, so I'll wake you up tomorrow so you can bathe, okay?"

"Okay." Goten said, yawning, his eyes half closed. He took stripped down until he was in his boxers, and went under the covers, Gohan following suit. Closing his eyes, the last thing Goten heard was his brother promising to protect him.

Goten woke up the next morning when he felt someone shaking him. He opened one black eye and was met by a similar one. He opened up his other eye, and smiled groggily. Goten was about to speak when he saw Gohan put a finger over his mouth. Nodding once, Goten crawled out of the bed, and followed Gohan down the hallway, and past the living room, where their drunk mother was passed out once again. Silently, they went through the kitchen and out the back door to the bath house. Goten let out the breath he has been holding, and took off his boxers, then hopped in the hot bath water. He smiled up at Gohan, who smiled back, and left the room. The young boy sensed his ki outside the door, and sighed with relief, knowing that his brother was close by.

After washing his hair and making sure he was clean, Goten put on his spare fighting gi, and opened the door, looking on as Gohan meditated near one of the Sakura trees. He went over and sat down next to his brother, putting a hand on his shoulder. He started laughing when Gohan jumped, not aware of his presence.

"Aren't you supposed to be alert?" the young boy teased. Gohan laughed and ruffled his spiky hair. Goten leaned against the same tree, daydreaming while Gohan was in the bath house. He easily got caught up in his daydreaming, jumping when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and was met by bright blue eyes.

"Hey, Goten." Trunks said, sitting down next to him.

"Hey, Trunks." he replied, smiling at his friend. He watched as Trunks' gaze went from his eyes, to his cheek. He panicked, hoping he wouldn't ask where he got it.

"What happened?" Trunks asked, touching the bruise, making the smaller boy wince.

"Nothing, I was sparring with Gohan." he answered. He sighed with relief when Trunks nodded. Both their heads went up when they heard the door to the bath house open. Gohan stepped out and smiled.

"Hey Trunks." he said.

"Hi." the purple haired boy answered, standing up. Goten followed suit, and he turned to Trunks.

"What did you want?" he asked. Trunks looked at him and smiled.

"I wanted to know if you were up for a spar." Goten nodded and looked up at Gohan, who gave his approval.

"Just be home before it gets dark, alright?"

"I will." Goten called, flying into the air after his friend. He finally caught up, and the two young demi saiyans started talking.

"How come you didn't come over last night?"

"Oh, I had to do some chores around the house." Goten lied, praying Trunks wouldn't pick up on it. Unfortunately, he did.

"Okay, now tell me the truth."

"What do you mean?" Goten asked, getting nervous as he watched the young princes eyes stare into his own, as if they were penetrating his soul.

"I can tell when you lie, Goten, just as I can tell when something is troubling you." he answered. Goten looked down, not wanting to tell Trunks what happened.

"Can we talk about something else?" the dark haired boy asked, avoiding his friends gaze. Trunks sighed but nodded. The two were almost to Capsule Corp. when suddenly, Goten stopped, feeling his brothers ki go way down. "I'll be right back Trunks." he said, heading for the direction of his house. He landed in the backyard about ten minutes later and ran all the way into the house, stopping dead in his tracks at what he saw.

The kitchen was a wreck. There were smashed plates and broken glass everywhere. The pots and pans were on the floor, and there was a small trail of what looked like blood. Panicking, Goten followed the small trail of blood up the stairs and down the hallway. The trail started getting thicker as it got closer to Gohans room. Taking a deep breath, Goten went in, then stopping. There, in the center of the floor, was Gohan, a pool of blood surrounding his body. Goten ran up to him, and shook him, trying to wake him up. Gohan didn't even move.

Gotens eyes filled with tears as he laid himself over the body of his dead brother. He sobbed uncontrollably, knowing it was his mother who did this. The bruises proved it, as did the knife in his chest. Gently, he took the knife out and let it drop to the side. He used his hand to trace the outline of Gohans pale face, his tears dripping onto his face.

"Gohan." he whispered, his body trembling from sobs. "Please don't leave me." he cried. "Please, please don't leave me." He knew it was no use, Gohan had departed from the word of the living. Goten knew he was with his father now, and prayed he was happy.

That night he stayed in his brothers room, hoping that by some miracle, Gohan would come back to life. Unfortunately, miracles don't always happen.

I lost my best friend and brother that day. Now you know what my life was like when I was nine. I learned a lot of things. One, never argue with our mother, two, never wake her up, and three, never underestimate her actions. I miss my brother dearly, and I will never forgive her for that. She took the one person who ever truly cared for me away, and I will get my revenged for him. I bet you're thinking "How could things get any worse?" well, believe me when I tell you, they did. They got much, much worse.

**I hope you liked my chapter. Please review, and let me know if I need to work on anything. Thanks for reading.**


	2. Authors Note, NOT A CHAPTER PLEASE READ!

**Umm, I hate to tell you this, but school is starting and I have homework, so I won't have a lot of time to update. I also have a small case of writers block, so I won't be updating as frequently. I'm sorry or the inconvinience, and I will update as soon as possible.**


	3. Younger Teen Years

**Holy crap, I am soo sorry it took me so long to update. Just been busy with school and have had writers block.**

**Warning: Child Abuse, Character Death, Suicide, Yaoi, Lemon. If you have a problem with any of this, then DO NOT READ.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. Dragon Ball, Dragon Ball Z and Dragon Ball GT belong to Toei animation, all I own is the plot of the story.**

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Well, now that you know what my life was like at nine, you can guess that it only got worse after Gohan died. Mom started beating me more and more, sometimes I couldn't even go to school, for fear someone would report the bruises. Let's skip ahead a few years. Here's how my life was, when I was thirteen.

Goten was flying through the sky, heading for Orange Star High School. For him, school was his savior. It was a way to get out of the house, and be away from his mother for eight hours. He was thankful she was too drunk to do much damage last night. She only managed a few punches and kicks. For him, that was nothing. He smiled, spotting a certain lavender haired prince ahead of him. He quickened his speed and flew next to Trunks, who didn't even notice him. He looked like he was in deep thought. Goten playfully punched his arm, watching his friend nearly jump out of his skin. The purple haired prince turned to him and smiled.

"Hey, Goten. What's up?"

"I could ask you the same thing. What were you thinking about?"

"Nothing, just thinking." Trunks replied, looking away. Goten sighed. Lately, Trunks had been so distant, he didn't know what it was, but he planned on finding out. The two flew in silence towards their school, they were almost there when Trunks spoke. "Goten?"

"Yeah?" he asked, looking over at his best friend.

"What do you think of Marron?" he asked. Goten shrugged.

"Personally, I think she's a bitch." he answered. He heard Trunks say oh beside him. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, I was going to ask her out." Goten sighed and looked down.

"Just ask her then." he said glumly. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Trunks give him an odd look, but didn't say anything. They landed behind the school so no one would see them, and headed through the steel double doors.

"See ya at lunch, Goten."

"See ya." he called, heading to his homeroom history class. Taking a seat in the back of the room, he saw Marron take her seat in front of him. She leaned forward and tapped the guy in front of her on the shoulder, kissing him when he turned around. That was boyfriend number three. _'Slut.' _Goten thought, leaning back in his chair. The teacher came in and started the class.

Goten started to daydream as soon as the teacher started her lecture. He thought of the person he loved so much, but he could never have. He was so caught up in thought, he hadn't heard the teacher call his name until he heard something snap on his desk. His head shot up and he looked at his history teacher.

"Goten, what is the answer to question five?"

"Um, twenty four?" he asked. Some of the kids started laughing, and his teacher shook her head.

"Please pay attention, Goten." she sighed, walking back up to the front of the room. Sighing, Goten started writing down everything that was on the board on his notebook, figuring it would be better than getting on her bad side. He shuddered at the thought.

Three classes and many assigned homework assignments later, Goten was sitting under one of the giant trees on the school grounds, munching on an apple. He sensed someone sit next to him and smiled, knowing who it was without even opening his eyes.

"Hey, Trunks."

"Yo." the purple haired teen said, sitting down next to him. "Sup?"

"Nothin much. Doing some homework."

"Oh, fun." Trunks replied sarcastically. Goten chuckled and put his English homework in it's folder.

"You got any homework?"

"Nah, I finished all of it in study hall." the purple haired prince replied. Goten rolled his eyes.

"Things are easier when you're a genius."

"Yes. Yes they are." Trunks said smuggly. Goten stuck his tongue out at him, before, stretching and relaxing against the tree, turning his head when he heard Trunks gasp.

"What?" he asked. The young prince was looking at his stomach wide eyed. Goten followed his gaze, and his face paled. His shirt had gone up, exposing some of the cuts and bruises he had gotten a few nights ago. Quickly, he put his arms down, shifting his gaze down. He felt a hand grab his, and he looked up into worried blue eyes.

"Goten, what happened to you?"

"N-nothing." the younger replied, not meeting his friends gaze. He heard Trunks growl, and he stiffened.

"You've been acting weird ever since the day Gohan died. I'm you're best friend and you won't even talk to me about anything anymore. It's me, you can tell me anything Goten." Trunks said, hurt evident in his voice and eyes. Goten sighed and shook his head.

"I can't tell you." the young saiyan said, his eyes closing. He heard Trunks growl again, and sensed the older saiyan stand up. He opened his eyes and looked up. "Where are you going?"

"Class." he growled, walking away. Goten jumped up and grabbed his arm.

"Trunks-"

"Come find me when you actually wanna talk to me." the saiyan prince said, ripping his arm out of his friends grip. He took off without looking back. Goten felt tears coming to his eyes, his fists clenching. He heard the bell ring, but didn't get up. He just sat there, thinking everything through.

He shifted, a few minutes later, about to get up when he felt something poke his hip. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a switchblade Gohan had gotten him. He looked at it for a few seconds, debating. He tossed it from palm to palm, just watching how the blade hit the sunlight. He stopped, and stared at it again, before shaking his head and putting it back in his pocket. He put his hands behind his head and looked up at the sky, thinking about everything. He heard the bell go off and grabbed his backpack, deciding it best if he didn't miss last period.

School seemed to go by slowly. Goten and Trunks had the same science class, which normally made Goten happy, but not today. Trunks didn't even look at him.

'_Now I'm truly alone.' _the dark haired boy thought, as he flew through the air towards his house. He landed in the backyard, and very quietly, opened the door and crept into the kitchen. He saw his mother in the living room, a beer bottle in her hand and he held his breath, letting it out when he reached the top of the stairs. He walked into his bedroom and sat at his desk, taking out what little homework he did have. He started his math homework, sighing when he reached the third problem.

'_I fucking hate math.' _he thought to himself, putting the sheet away. "I'll work on it tomorrow." he plopped down on his bed, and closed his eyes, almost falling asleep. However, he opened his eyes when he felt his cheek start stinging. He put his hand on his cheek, and looking up, coming face to face, with his mother.

"Where the fuck were you?!" she yelled, punching him across the face. He rolled over on his bed, and fell onto the floor, getting kicked in the gut before he could get back up. "Answer me." she screeched, kicking him as hard as she could, breaking one of his ribs.

"I- I was…here." he gasped out, trying his best to get up, but not succeeding. He grabbed him by his hair and yanked him up, smacking him again.

"Don't lie to me!"

"N-not, l-lying." he stuttered, trying to catch his breath. Finally, he gave up struggling. He let her beat him until she got bored and went downstairs. He didn't move for quite a while, not until he was absolutely positive Chichi had gone to sleep. He sat up slowly, looking to see what was broken and what wasn't. Satisfied that nothing other than a few ribs were broken, he got up and made his way to the bathroom, getting the alcohol from the cupboard and applying it to his various wounds. Once he finished he went to leave, when he knocked one of the shaving holders off the counter. He bent down, and winced, then picked the stuff up. He put the razors back in the holder, but held on to the small blade in his hand.

The next morning the dark haired youth woke up to the sunlight in his eyes. He sat up and yawned, stretching his aching muscles. He stood up groggily and went over to hid window, moving the curtains so they blocked out the light. When he reached up he looked at the red line on his wrist. He looked at it and silently cursed his saiyan healing.

'_Then again, I guess I pressed pretty hard considering there's still a mark.' _he thought to himself. He sat back on his bed and pulled the covers over himself, happy it was Saturday. He closed his eyes, but found himself not being able to fall back asleep. He got up when he heard his mother moving around downstairs. He went over to his closet and put on a shirt and a pair of black cargo pants, ran a hand through his shaggy black hair, and went downstairs, ready to take any punishment she gave him.

He walked into the kitchen and was very surprised to see her cooking and singing. She looked somewhat happy for once. She turned when she saw him and smiled.

"Morning, sweetie." she said, going back to cooking. Puzzled, Goten mumbled a soft good morning and went to the fridge to get a drink. He pulled out some orange juice, poured it in a glass, and was about to go upstairs. "Aren't you going to eat breakfast with me?" Cautiously, he answered.

"Uh, sure." he said, taking a seat at the kitchen table, his mother sitting across from him. She looked at him and sighed.

"Goten, I'm sorry for the way I've been when I'm drunk. But, I'm getting help. I'm going to be going to meetings, and I'm going to try and get myself back together." Goten looked at her wide eyed, too surprised to speak. Who was this woman? What happened to his evil, abusing mother?

"T-that's g-great mom." he said, deciding he should say something so she didn't get mad. She smiled again and got up.

"It's going to be okay, Goten. I promise." she said sincerely, putting her hand on his shoulder and squeezing it before leaving the house. Goten had tried his best not to flinch when she touched him, which was extremely hard. He couldn't help but think to himself, does she mean it? Or is she lying again?

Chichi had promised once before that she was going to get help, and about a week later she was right back to beating him. He shuddered at those memories, she had been more abusive that day than normal. He guessed it was the alcohol making it's way back through her system. He wanted to believe she would go through with it, but he knew she wouldn't. Sighing, he stood up, washed his glass, and went outside, floating up in the air and flying, not caring where he went. He was too caught up in his thoughts to notice he landed in the park by the Sakura trees.

He remembered himself and Trunks used to go there after sparring just to relax and talk. He smiled, remembering the memories of when he was younger, when things were good. He sat down on the grass and leaned against one of the trees, letting the memories flow through his mind.

He thought about the word tournament, and how he got to meet his father for the first time, watching him fight had been amazing. Then he thought about when him and Trunks had jumped the guy there and stole his costume, pretending to be Mighty Mask so they could fight in the adult competition.

He grinned, recalling when him, Trunks and Piccolo were to fight Majin Buu, and Trunks came up with the idea to nicely ask him to stop destroying the planet.

'_The look on Piccolo's face was priceless.' _he thought to himself, looking out over the water. His memories then went to his big brother, and he frowned, his eyes sad. _'Why did I go with Trunks? Why? I could have helped you.' _he thought, failing at holding back his tears. A few slipped from his eyes and down his cheeks, dropping onto his lap.

"It's not fair." he growled. "Why did you have to die?" he started trembling, the tears coming harder. He took a couple of deep breaths, and forced himself to stop crying. _'That's it. I'm done being a weakling, I'm done crying.' _he thought to himself, his dark brown eyes going from sad to cold. He stood up and took off into the air, heading for his house.

When he arrived he saw boxes all over the place, and the walls, cabinets, and shelves were bare. He looked in some of the boxes and found the items resting in them. He walked into the living room, and saw his mother packing up some of the pictures that once hung on the walls. She turned to him and smiled.

"We're moving, go get packed."

"What do you mean, moving?" Goten asked, dumbfounded. Chichi stopped packing and walked up to him.

"Sweetie, I told you I'm going to stop drinking, so I figured we would move away from the past. Leave it behind us, you know? Now, go get packed, we're leaving tonight." Without a word, Goten went upstairs to his bedroom, and found about six large boxes on the floor. Sighing, he went to work packing up his belongings, well, most of them. Some of which could not fit in the boxes, or he didn't want to get ruined. He kept the knife Gohan got him in his pocket, and in his other pocket, he put the picture of himself, Gohan, and his father. He looked at the picture for a few moments before he heard Chichi call him from downstairs. He capsuled the boxes, put them in his backpack, and headed down the stairs, finding his mother waiting by the door with her keys.

"Ready?" she asked, happily. Goten nodded, putting a fake smile on his face. They walked out the door, got in the car, and took off, going to live in their new home, god knows where.

The next morning, Goten woke up to the sound of a horn. He opened his brown eyes, and looked to his side, where his mother was driving. She looked like she'd been driving all night, yet still had a slight smile on her face. The dark haired teen sat up, catching her attention.

"Good morning." she said, her eyes going from him, back to the road they were driving on.

"Morning." he mumbled, looking forward. He looked to his sides, trying to find a sign to tell him where they were. As if reading his mind, Chichi spoke.

"We're in Pepper City." she said. Goten nodded, slightly happy that he was only two hours away from where their old house was. He leaned back against the seat, and relaxed slightly, watching as his mother made a right turn, then a left, pulling up to what looked like a condo complex. Raising an eyebrow, the young demi-saiyan turned to his mother, who was taking the keys out of the ignition.

"This is where we're living?" he asked, unbuckling his seat belt and getting out of the car.

"Yes." Chichi answered, grabbing her purse from the backseat, while he grabbed his backpack. He watched as she took out a set of keys, and opened one of the many doors attached to the building. They stepped inside, and Goten looked around in disgust. The walls were a dirty yellow, the floor was covered in dirt, and there were bugs flying around.

"Where is my room?" he asked softly, still unsure on how fast his mothers mood would change. She surprised him once again by pointing down the hallway and smiling.

"Yours is on the right, mine is the left. I'm going to lie down for a bit, please don't wake me." she said, heading down the hallway towards her bedroom. Goten went down the hallways five minutes after Chichi had gone in her room, making sure she was somewhat asleep. He quietly closed the door to his room and took his capsules out of his backpack, tossing them here and there. He tossed the one that held is bed towards the corner of the room, so one side of his bed was pushed against the wall. He unpacked the boxes that held his clothes, and put them in the very small closet, and put the rest away in the dresser he had set up on the wall opposite his bed. The young saiyan plopped down on his bed after he unpacked everything, and turned to his side, looking at the picture of him, his brother and father, that was sitting on his bedside table.

"I really miss you both." he said before drifting off to sleep.

It's been three weeks since they moved, and Goten was feeling pretty good. Chichi was getting help, and he hadn't gotten any beatings. At this moment he was in his science class at his new school, waiting for the bell to ring, along with the other twenty two kids in his class. Finally, the bell rang, and everyone practically jumped out of their seats, happy to be out of school for the weekend. He went to his locker and put some of the books he didn't need for weekend homework away, and preceded to head for home.

He got to his front door, and found it locked.

'_Hm, normally mom's home by now.' _he thought, taking his spare key out of his pocket and unlocking the door. "Mom?" he called out, but no one answered. Shrugging, he went into his bedroom to start on his weekend homework, so he wouldn't have to worry about it over the weekend. He took out his geography homework, and just started working on it when he heard his mother yell to him. He tensed, he knew the tone of voice she was using very well. Gulping, he walked out of his room, and into the living room, and was met by a fist to the nose. He stumbled back and fell on his butt, looking up at the intoxicated eyes of his mother. She kicked him in the gut, and grabbed him by his arm, yanking him up. He heard a popping noise, and a shooting pain in his shoulder. He cried out when she threw him against the wall and started punching him in the gut.

"S-stop." he managed to gasp out, squeezing his eyes shut as she continued to beat him. When she was done she went into the kitchen, opened a beer can and went into her room. Goten managed to painfully pull himself up, and stumble into the bathroom. He took out the first aid kit, and wrapped his bandages, then gritted his teeth and popped his shoulder back into place. He bit his tongue so he wouldn't cry out.

Once he wrapped his wounds and fixed his shoulder somewhat, he stumbled back to his room and fell on top of his bed, curling up into a small ball on the blanket. He closed his eyes, and forced his tears away, his fists clenching angrily.

"She lied. She fucking lied, again. And I was stupid enough to believe her." he snarled, his eyes flashing teal, and a flicker of gold outlining his hair, before it returned back to black. He closed his eyes and willed sleep upon himself, no longer trusting anyone.

Well, now you see what my younger teen hood was like. We moved a lot after that night. I lost track of the cities. Mom blew all her money on booze, so we couldn't afford the rent. The beatings got worse it seemed, which most people thought was impossible. I learned to hide everything I felt. My face became blank, and I spoke to no one. I trusted no one.

**I know it's short, and it took me a long time to put it out, but hey, it's a chapter, isn't it? I hope you liked it, and I will add another when I get the chance.**


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